Culture

Constitution Day 2026: Wescot-Williams pushes referendum law, Heyliger-Marten calls for constitutional referendum

In separate Constitution Day messages, Parliament President Sarah Wescot-Williams pressed for a Referendum Ordinance and Minister Grisha Heyliger-Marten called dualism the main cause of government instability.

By SXM Daily · October 16, 2026

Two Constitution Day messages this year put Sint Maarten's constitutional future back on the agenda. Parliament President Sarah Wescot-Williams called for a law to regulate referendums, while Tourism Minister Grisha Heyliger-Marten said dualism has destabilised government and called for a constitutional referendum.

Photo: Richie Diesterheft / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

Sint Maarten officially marked 16 years as a country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands on 11 October, according to the government's release of Heyliger-Marten's address. The two addresses were separate messages from different speakers, and the views below are theirs.

Wescot-Williams: a Referendum Ordinance

In her Constitution Day address, Wescot-Williams (DP) said Article 92 of the Constitution calls for referendums to be regulated by national ordinance. "That is why I have initiated the Referendum Ordinance," she said. According to her, its purpose is to set rules on who may start a referendum, how questions are worded, how voters are informed and what effect the outcome has.

She said Parliament must consider and adopt the ordinance through the proper legislative process, including advice from the Council of Advice.

The official English translation of the Constitution states in Article 92: "Consultative referendums are conducted at the initiative of Parliament." Parliament's list of draft national ordinances dated 1 March 2026 shows no Referendum Ordinance. She says she initiated the draft and that it is under consideration; no debate date has been set.

The PMIA panel

At a Constitution Day panel organised by PMIA on 12 October, Wescot-Williams repeated that a Referendum Ordinance is still needed before any referendum can be held, according to Soualiga Newsday and SXM Today. As reported, she said referendums would be consultative, must be started by the government or Parliament, and that a petition is not a referendum.

Heyliger-Marten: dualism and a constitutional referendum

In a Constitution Day message published by the Government of Sint Maarten, Heyliger-Marten wrote that she did not vote for the current status in the referendum about 26 years ago. "I voted for independence," she wrote.

She argued that "the switch to dualism is the main cause of the many changes in government." She called on MPs to resume electoral reform and give serious attention to "our constitutional and governmental structure, including holding a constitutional referendum."

She also wrote that, for the first time since 10-10-10, she had decided not to attend the celebrations, and said her absence was not meant as disrespect to the nation.

What it means for residents

Nothing changes for now. Both messages are political proposals. Any referendum would first need a law setting the rules, and that law would have to go through Parliament.

What happens next

Watch Parliament's agenda for the Referendum Ordinance. Neither speaker nor the panel gave a date for a debate or a vote.

Sources

https://smn-news.com/index.php/st-maarten-st-martin-news/52000-constitution-day-2026-address-by-president-of-parliament-leader-of-the-democratic-party-mp-sarah-wescot-williams.html
https://www.sintmaartengov.org/news/Pages/press-release.aspx?slug=constitution-day-address
https://www.sintmaartengov.org/Ministries/Campaigns/Documents/AB%201_Staatsregeling%20English%20%281%29.pdf
https://www.soualiganewsday.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=67236
https://sxmtoday.com/news/wescot-williams-raises-referendum-rules-at-constitution-panel
https://sxmparliament.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Stand-van-Zaken-Lijst-Landsverordeningen-totaal-ENG-March-1-2026.pdf

Source: https://smn-news.com/index.php/st-maarten-st-martin-news/52000-constitution-day-2026-address-by-president-of-parliament-leader-of-the-democratic-party-mp-sarah-wescot-williams.html